Mauviel French copper paella gratin pan pot 16" new tin Villedieu France NICE - $500 - (Oakmont, PA)
On offer here is a nice paella pan made in Villedieu-les-Poêles a long time ago, not in the 12th century when the Knights of Malta first set up shop in Villedieu, courtesy of the king and some duke or other, but longer ago than yesterday. My guess is that it's about 30 years old, made by Mauviel, or made by a shop in Villedieu that Mauviel bought in the late 20th century, since it's identical to a couple of dozen Mauviel paella pans I've handled over the years, and that I currently have in my possession, used for all kinds of cooking, not just paella. I've had many 20" paella pans, a couple of 18" ones, several 16" ones and several 14" ones, the last size made up until a few years ago. The pan is marked with the Maltese cross, probably in recognition of having been made in this city which owes its name to the order of knights who worked copper there ages ago. Villedieu is spelled out in the middle of the cross, and 'marque deposee', or 'trademark' underneath the cross. The little pot above the name is a typical copper urn of the region and the bell underneath is there because Villedieu is also a bell-casting center. I had it retinned by Rocky Mountain Retinning, who made it look like new, not that it was in bad shape to begin, no pits, gouges, scratches, but there's just something about new tin, and newly polished copper, isn't there? The pan is 16" in diameter, add a couple of inches for the handles, about 2" high, 2mm thick, and I think it's about 7 1/2 pounds, but I'll have to double-check and add it later. The pan sits flat and is in round. The handles are triple-riveted cast brass. Paella pans this size haven't been made in a while, and paella pans in any size are no longer made at all.
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From ebay.com - 1 month ago